Geoff Relf’s work on display at UCSD Arts Library. See page B4
LifeStyles
One woman plays 20 parts in show about health care. See page B10
Thursday, April 21, 2011
SECTION B
‘Sam the Cooking Guy’ sizzles with new book ‘Just Grill This!’
10 QUESTIONS
Surgeon links obesity/food shortage at Meals4Hunger Dr. Sunil Bhoyrul of Olde Del Mar Surgical is a fellowship-trained specialist in laparoscopic surgery, and an attending surgeon at Scripps Memorial Hospital in La Jolla and the out-patient surgery center in La Jolla. Previously, Dr. Bhoyrul was the head of general surgery and surgical director of bariatric surgery at the Scripps Clinic. Each year since 2005, he’s been selected by his peers as one of the “Best Doctors in America.” A diplomate of the American Board of Surgery and a fellow of Dr. Sunil Bhoyrul both the Royal College of Surgeons of England, and the American College of Surgeons, Dr. Bhoyrul was chief resident in surgery at Stanford University. He has contributed research to the field of laparoscopic surgery, with numerous publications in peer-reviewed journals. He is co-editor of “Fundamentals of Laparoscopic Surgery,” one of the first textbooks in the field. He routinely performs Roux-en-Y gastric bypass surgery, gastric banding surgery, colectomy, gastrectomy, anti reflux surgery, appendectomy, splenectomy, hernia repair, adrenalectomy, and other complex, minimally invasive surgical procedures. In 2008, he founded Meals4Hunger, based in La Jolla. Its mission is to link the success in the treatment of obesity to the eradication of hunger in San Diego communities. Dr. Bhoyrul hopes to inspire other businesses in the medical, food, and exercise industry to join. Learn more at Meals4Hunger.org
Sam Zien, also known as ‘Sam the Cooking Guy’
(COURTESY PHOTOS)
1. What brought you to this area? It’s the best place in the world to balance work, life, and the spirit. 2. What makes this area special to you? It has everything – the best geography, the best people, and a sense of being that can only come from living this close to the
SEE QUESTIONS B22
(Above) Sam Zien’s new book, ‘Just Grill This!’ (Left) Chicken parmesan sub
BY KAREN BILLING Staff Writer Sam Zien, better known as “Sam the Cooking Guy,” likes to say that cooking is a lot like riding a bike. “The more you do it, the better you get,” said Zien. “I fully believe that. People always think that they can’t cook but it’s just that they don’t cook.” With his third book, “Just Grill This!”, Zien encourages people to conquer the sometimes-intimidating skill of grilling. With his trademark tasty simplicity, the book offers up more than 120 recipes, going far beyond just burgers and dogs—grilled baguette French toast anyone? Zien has lived in his Carmel Valley home for 16 years and it serves as the set for his TV show that airs on Cox Channel 4 in San Diego and is syndicated nationwide. Two episodes per month are shot in his kitchen, which underwent a renovation two years ago to include a spacious teak wood countertop, colorful tiled backsplashes and every shiny, dream kitchen appliance you could think of. Zien became “Sam the Cooking Guy” in 2002. His previous gig was completely unrelated to cooking or TV at all—he worked as director of operations in a biotech company. He left the job to pursue television, originally planning to do a travel show. “I liked the idea of a regular-sort-of-guy showing you how to do something you didn’t know how to do,” Zien said. His travel show plans were derailed by 9/11 and he was in search of something else a regular-sort-of-guy could show people how to do. A self-proclaimed “student of TV,” he happened upon a cooking segment on a local news show that he thought was pretty boring. “That needs to be better,” Zien thought, and in a flash decided a cooking show was the direction he’d head, even though up until then his wife Kelly had done all the cooking — he had been in charge of the grilling, which he said was mostly “the burning.” To avoid being boring on TV, Zien kept his delivery natural, honest and “100 percent me.” “I was not very good in my early TV ap SEE COOKING, B22